The mood in the property market throughout northern Queensland is improving, says RE/MAX Australia managing director, Michael Davoren.
RE/MAX Australia managing director Michael Davoren recently travelled from Wide Bay through to northern Queensland regions, where he says the mood in the property market has lifted.
“While housing demand in towns linked to the stalled mining and resources sector fell and took house prices with it, there are signs of a welcome change.
“Most of our offices have seen sales volumes begin to lift and there are signs that falling house prices are tapering in some regions.
“People are daring to suggest that the worst of the price falls are now in the past.
“I officiated at a new office opening in Mackay, RE/MAX Results, where around 80 guests showed a great deal of positivity in the market and the local economy. The opening actually coincided with the office’s first settled sale.
“Agents in Cairns, Townsville, Mackay, Gladstone, Bundaberg and Hervey Bay, for example, are more optimistic that projects mooted and property investment will create demand for housing.
“Infrastructure investments, greater affordability compared with other centres and ongoing low interest rates make these markets to watch.
“In addition to being among the most affordable pockets of Queensland, rural areas can give buyers a lifestyle option as well as employment opportunities. Bundaberg, for example is supported economically through small crop and cane farming, and all the regional cities are supported by the tourism sector.”
Affordability tends to make buyers the obvious winners but Davoren says things were looking up for sellers.
“Some markets have been suppressed for considerable time, with median house prices amongst the cheapest in the nation
"Confidence has just turned and with the interest rates still low, we are seeing signs of the market picking up as we head into the second half of the year.
“Developments are getting underway as is investment in infrastructure, and we may have turned the corner a little bit.
"It is looking much improved for the future," he said. “We can hope to see property values pick up, making today an opportune time for owner-occupiers and investors to enter markets with potential.”
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